


Essence of Life

by honey_butter



Category: Love Simon (2018), Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bram Greenfeld centred, Bram/Simon centred, Canon Compliant, Family, Hate Crimes, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, Post-Canon, The hate crime isn't described in great detail, hospital waiting rooms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-12
Updated: 2018-05-12
Packaged: 2019-05-05 19:22:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14625381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honey_butter/pseuds/honey_butter
Summary: Bram played with his tea bag’s tag, fingers twirling it this way and that, it's black on white print twisting: The essence of life is to communicate love. The hospital’s white waiting room was mind numbing, the fluorescent lights glinting off the tiled floor and reflecting back up into his sleep deprived eyes, making the world seem to glow ethereally. But there was nothing ethereal about this place, this situation, the tan benches that contained the entire Spier family.Well, almost the entire Spier family.Because the one person that Bram would have most liked to be here was the sole reason why he was sitting in a near desolate waiting room, clutching the tea bag’s paper label that seemed to laugh in his face.





	Essence of Life

**Author's Note:**

> Just to let you know, this is centred around a hate crime, the crime itself is not described in detail but the aftermath is. If this bothers you in any way please do not read, I want my readers to feel safe. It is angsty but there is a happy ending so just hang in there, hope you enjoy! (This is also my first fic posted to this site, so if the format is wonky please let me know so I can fix it.)

Bram played with his tea bag’s tag, fingers twirling it this way and that, it’s black and white print twisting: The essence of life is to communicate love. The hospital’s white waiting room was mind numbing, the fluorescent lights glinting off the tiled floor and reflecting back up into his sleep deprived eyes, making the world seem to glow ethereally. But there was nothing ethereal about this place, this situation, the tan benches that contained the entire Spier family.

Well, almost the entire Spier family.

Because the one person that Bram would have most liked to be here was the sole reason why he was sitting in a near desolate waiting room, clutching the tea bag’s paper label that seemed to laugh in his face.

Because Bram might not have another chance to communicate his love for Simon Spier.

He remembered the phone call that had pulled him from his restless sleep, Simon’s contact info appearing on his screen. Bram had frowned but picked up anyway, Simon usually slept like a rock.

“Hey, Si.”

But it wasn’t Simon who answered the phone, “Bram, it’s Emily. Emily Spier. Simon’s mom. I… I don’t know how to say this… Some boys hurt Simon, really bad. We’re at the hospital, he’s just going into surgery. Alice said you should know-”

She continued to ramble, but Bram had stopped listening. Simon, his Simon, hurt, afraid, in the hospital.

“-It’s… it’s not looking so good right now. You don’t have to come but…”

“No,” Bram cut her off, sitting up straight in his bed, pushing his covers off, already about to leap to find clothes, “I’m on my way. I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”

He heard Emily let out a sound that might be a sob, “Thank you, I know he’d want you here.”

Bram was silent for a moment, “Just, Mrs. Spier, would you text me if something happens before I get there.”

Another choked sound crackled through the receiver before she mumbled that she would, she would, for the boy who was on a surgery table she would do anything.  
The phone was hung up and Bram was scurrying to get dressed, pulling on the hoodie that Simon had left at his place just two days ago. He wouldn’t think about the implications of the phone call, wouldn’t think about what his request could mean. Simon was going to be okay, Simon had to be okay.

And that was how Bram had ended up here, seated in the glowing waiting room beside all of Simon’s loved one’s. When he’d first arrived, Bram had toyed with the idea of texting their group, letting Leah, Abby, Nick, and Garrett know, if only for the sake of having someone to talk to without actually having to talk. But then he realized what that would mean, all four of them waking up and stumbling to the hospital, crowding into the silence that was already deafening.

“Bram,” Nora was seated beside him, cuddled up into her father’s side, now she turned to him. “Do you know who hurt him?”

Bram could only shake his head, couldn’t make his mouth move. No, he hadn’t known where Simon was. No, he hadn’t known who Simon was with. No, he hadn’t known that Simon was about to get hurt.

“I want to kill them,” Alice muttered dejectedly, her head resting on her mother’s shoulder.

They were all entwined together, the entire Spier family, Bram felt like a trespasser lurking in the shadows of their grief. He felt his fist ball up on his knee; God, if he could only hold Simon’s hand right now, or see his smile, then everything would be okay.

“Are you okay, honey?” Emily asked him, her arm moving from where it had been wrapped around her husband’s shoulder to touch Bram’s arm.

And that was when the tears began to leak out of his eyes, and once they started he couldn’t stop them. As one, the family shifted over and gathered him up in their hug, he kept sobbing, soaking a spot in Nora’s t-shirt and a part of Jack’s sweater. They just held him tighter.

~~~

“Are you Simon Spier’s family?”

Bram was the first to answer, biting out a short, “Yes.”

“Okay, I’m Dr. Gupta. Simon is out of surgery and seems to be responding well, but he is still in intensive care.”

“Is he conscious?” Bram wasn’t sure who had said that, it was all beginning to blur together.

Simon was out of surgery, he was going to be okay.

“No, we had to give him an anesthesia to perform the procedure, but I can bring one family member back to see him.”

All eyes turned to Emily as she extricated herself from the group and stood up, “I’d like to see my baby, please.”

Jack squeezed her hand and Bram did not miss the sparkle of tears that had begun to fill her eyes.

“Follow me, please.”

As they walked through a set of swinging double doors, Bram fought back another sob, Simon was going to be okay.

 

~~~

“Bram, sweetie, he’s awake.” Once again Bram woke up to the sound of Emily Spier’s voice, this time, though, her words filled him up with hope.

“Can I see him?” Bram mumbled, hands already beginning to fiddle with the closest object, the tea bag.

“Yes, honey, Nora just finished.”

“Okay,” Bram stood, wobbling for a second after so many hours of sitting, before moving to follow Emily.

He glanced down at his tea bag one last time, The essence of life is to communicate love. He hadn’t told Simon he loved him yet. Had shown him with his actions maybe, but the words had never left his lips. He’d nearly lost his chance of ever saying them, he wouldn’t wait any longer.

Simon was attached to so many wires that made the steady beeping and whirring fill the quiet hospital room. Bram nervously pushed open the door, he almost couldn’t make himself look at Simon because that would make this all real.

When he did, though, it jerked a new bout of tears to the surface. Simon’s beautiful face was nearly entirely covered by bruises, one side of his head wrapped in bandaging. The rest of his body looked no better, clad in only a hospital gown, Bram could see all of the bruises that dotted his arms and a bandage that peaked out of the top of the gown.  
“Is that my sweatshirt?” Simon croaked and Bram began to cry for real now, because his Simon was okay.

“I love you so much,” Bram whispered, throwing himself across Simon, trying to wrap him up in the gentlest but firmest hug he could.  
“I love you too,” Simon whispered, unable to move his arms to hug Bram back.

“Who the fuck did this to you?” Bram choked on the words, but he had to ask them, had to get them out.

“Some boys from school, the police already came in here and took my statement.”

God, Bram had missed the police getting here, too? How long had he been asleep?

“They’re going to arrest them for a hate crime.”

At that, Bram pulled back, his eyes searching his beautiful boyfriend’s face. Of course it was because Simon was gay and living in Georgia. Of course it was because Simon was dating another boy, dating him. 

“I was so worried,” Bram mumbles because he doesn’t know what to say, doesn’t know if the acidic hatred churning in his gut should be expressed.

“I’m so sorry, babe.”

And then they’re kissing. It’s not heated, but it is passionate, the kind of passionate you get from your significant other nearly dying. 

When they pulled away, Simon looked like he was trying to smile, “Someday, we’re going to look back on this and laugh.”

At that Bram did smile, “No, Simon, I’m never going to be able to laugh about this. Someday, I’ll remember what this felt like and pull you close to me and never let you go.”  
A single tear leaked out of Simon’s eye, “I think I’d rather you do that now.”

So Bram did.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I got this idea off of one of my own tea bag labels, it said that The essence of life is to communicate love and I couldn't help think of our boys. I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
